1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to an apparatus for and a method of recording images which can be applied to printers, copiers, electronic typewriters or facsimile machines.
2. Related Background
As various types of information processing system have been developed recently along with the rapid growth of the information industry, various recording apparatuses which suit these information processing systems have also been developed.
One example is a thermal recording apparatus which employs an ink ribbon for recording information on paper sheets. The ink ribbon is composed of a ribbon-shaped base and a hot-melt ink coated on the base, the ink containing a hot-melt binder and coloring agents dispersed in the binder.
Specifically, to record ink images on sheets of recording paper by application of heat in this thermal recording apparatus, the ink ribbon is brought into contact with the sheet of recording paper in such a manner that its layer of hot-melt ink faces the recording paper sheet. The ink ribbon and the recording paper sheet are then conveyed between a thermal head and a platen, during which pulse-like heat is applied to the ink ribbon and the recording paper sheet by the thermal head from the side of the base of the ink ribbon in accordance with the picture signals, and at the same time both the ink ribbon and recording paper sheet are pressed against each other so that melted ink is transferred onto the recording paper sheet.
Since this type of recording apparatus requires small and light-weight components, and should make no noise and be capable of employing sheets of normal paper, it has been widely used in recent years.
However, the conventional thermal recording apparatuses have the disadvantages described below.
Firstly, the image quality is greatly affected by the surface smoothness of the sheets of recording paper. In other words, excellent images can be recorded on a sheet of recording paper which has a high degree of smoothness, but the quality of the recorded images may decrease with a sheet of recording paper having a low degree of smoothness.
Further, when a multi-color image is to be recorded in the conventional thermal recording apparatuses, the transfer process must be repeated to obtain a desired color. This requires a plurality of thermal heads, as well as a complicated form of movement of the recording paper sheet, such as suspension of movement and backward movement. Generation of color unmatching is therefore inevitable, and large and complicated kinds of equipment are necessitated.
Accordingly, the present applicant has invented a method of recording images and a transfer medium which can obviate the above-described problems of the prior art and are capable of recording images of high quality on a recording medium having a low degree of surface smoothness. The present applicant has also invented a method of recording images and a transfer medium which are capable of recording multi-color images without requiring that the recording medium be moved in a complicated manner. The present applicant filed patent applications for these inventions at the Japanese Patent Office under application Nos. 120080/1985 (on June 3, 1985), 120081/1985 (on June 3, 1985), 131411/1985 (on June 17, 1985), 134831/1985 (on June 20, 1985), 150597/1985 (on July 9, 1985), 199926/1985 (on Sep., 10, 1985), and 250884/1985 (on Nov. 11, 1985). He also filed patent applications for these inventions in the U.S.A. (under application No. 869,689 on June 2, 1986, and in Europe.. (under application No. 86107540.6) on June 3, 1986 on the basis of a claim to priority.
The present invention which is described later is a further development of the above-described inventions for which the present applicant has already filed patent applications at the Japanese Patent Office, in the U.S.A., and in Europe, and it is to be noted that the present invention can adopt the methods of recording images and the transfer media disclosed in the specifications of the above-mentioned applications.